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The phone is a remarkably complex, simple device,
and very rarely ever needs repairs, once you fix them. Dan/Panther

So when I was a kid , I used to spend a lot of time phreaking and playing from a Pacific Northwest Bell line. Back then, in the early 70s I made an odd discovery that haunts me to this day. This was a Portland, OR line when the entire state was 503 area code.

Officially (503) 922 NXXX was assigned to Umatilla or Pendleton Oregon which was at the other end of the state, and long distance from me in (503) 777.

I discovered however I was able to dial 922 XXX (just six digits , when 7 digit local dialing was required) and it would ring and I would get an answer often times. Now I was in the (503) 777 prefix when I used to play with this most but I am almost certain that it also worked from other prefixes as well. I might have considered this a carryover from 5 digit dialing such as was used in Seaside Oregon at least until the 1980s , however there was no 792 prefix in Portland at that time that I was aware of. Maybe however the 922 was pre-pended with a 2 which represented the first digit of the majority of Prefixes in Portland? This would have possibly meant that these calls were going to 292 prefix on the other side of town?

So this remains a perplexing question that maybe some old phone guy here may have some insight into. I am very curios to know why this was the ONLY prefix I could dial 6 digit numbers on and where the hell those calls went.

Was 777- a step-by-step central office? Perhaps you were reaching 792-xxxx, if 7 was absorbed repeatedly by the 1st selector in your c.o.. Or, you were reaching a c.o. where the incoming first or the second selector absorbed a digit, thus allowing you to omit that digit. 9[5]2-2xxx where the call switched on 9 (connected you to the incoming 1st SEL at the other office), then 5 (or whatever the assigned 2nd N of the NNX) was absorbed at the 952 office.

Logged

"C'est pas une restauration, c'est une rénovation."--François Martin.

Alex G. Bell

So when I was a kid , I used to spend a lot of time phreaking and playing from a Pacific Northwest Bell line. Back then, in the early 70s I made an odd discovery that haunts me to this day. This was a Portland, OR line when the entire state was 503 area code.

Officially (503) 922 NXXX was assigned to Umatilla or Pendleton Oregon which was at the other end of the state, and long distance from me in (503) 777.

I discovered however I was able to dial 922 XXX (just six digits , when 7 digit local dialing was required) and it would ring and I would get an answer often times. Now I was in the (503) 777 prefix when I used to play with this most but I am almost certain that it also worked from other prefixes as well. I might have considered this a carryover from 5 digit dialing such as was used in Seaside Oregon at least until the 1980s , however there was no 792 prefix in Portland at that time that I was aware of. Maybe however the 922 was pre-pended with a 2 which represented the first digit of the majority of Prefixes in Portland? This would have possibly meant that these calls were going to 292 prefix on the other side of town?

So this remains a perplexing question that maybe some old phone guy here may have some insight into. I am very curios to know why this was the ONLY prefix I could dial 6 digit numbers on and where the hell those calls went.

Thanks

Mark

Was it necessary to dial "1" to make a toll call outside the local Portland area?

How do you know you were reaching Umatilla or Pendleton Oregon?

Line #s are always 4 digits. So if you dialed 922 XXX you were reaching 92-2XXX with a 3rd unknown office code digit, probably X92-2XXX.

There was no 792 prefix in Portland at that time. So I think the theory that dialing 92 took me to 792 is not likely, but I suppose it could have been taking me to 292 prefix as the original prefixes in Portland (Pacific Northwest Bell) I believe mostly began with 2, excepting the prefix I was dialing from 777 and a few others.

Local calls were 7 digits NXX XXXX , no 1 or other digit(s) were required all of Portland was 7 digits

I do not know where I was calling but 1 503 922 XXXX would have dialed the other side of the state.

There was no 792 prefix in Portland at that time. So I think the theory that dialing 92 took me to 792 is not likely, but I suppose it could have been taking me to 292 prefix as the original prefixes in Portland (Pacific Northwest Bell) I believe mostly began with 2, excepting the prefix I was dialing from 777 and a few others.

Local calls were 7 digits NXX XXXX , no 1 or other digit(s) were required all of Portland was 7 digits

I do not know where I was calling but 1 503 922 XXXX would have dialed the other side of the state.

i was calling 922 XXX , not 7 digits and without 1

The question was NOT whether you had to dial 1 within Portland. The question was whether you had to dial 1 to reach the rest of the state, or if not 1, then what? It's unlikely you dialed the entire state on a 7-digit basis.

This may be getting a little off topic, but here is something that came from the PRospect exchange in Portland.

I do not mind the off topic AT ALL in this case. I like it!

PhonesrfunYou know I have an uncle that Still has the Same Portland ALpine 2 number since the 1950s and still a copper line. Coincidently it was his basement where I had my first collection of antique phones stolen from.